A new exhibition, which opens at Newcastle Museum today, will take visitors on a journey through the city’s skateboarding subculture
Curated by local skateboarder and academic James Turvey, the Shralp exhibition uses skateboarding print media as a lens to view the spots, people, and art of the Newcastle skate scene and how it has exposed the city to the world.
“Skateboarding culture has flourished in Newcastle for over 35 years and when Museum Park opened in 2020, skaters flocked to the space to skate and socialise,” Newcastle Museum Director Julie Baird said.
“Finding this inclusive subculture on our doorstep inspired Newcastle Museum to collaborate with the community to produce a new exhibition.
“It also explores the role this community plays in documenting the changing nature of Newcastle’s urban environments as our city evolves over the decades.”
More than just a form of transport, James Turvey said he believes the subculture with a rich and diverse history in Newcastle is a world unto itself.
“Skateboarding as a subculture has always been more than transport. It has its own world, one that seeks to find new terrain, new tricks and new talent. The average bench or steps become a landmark of who’s done what and when,” James said.
“For over thirty-five years Novocastrian skateboarders have been archiving their own history; the city’s stairs, skateparks, benches and backyards have featured in print all over the world.”
The free exhibition opens to the public on 12 August and will run through to 30 October. Visit newcastlemuseum.com.au to find out more.
